Daley debuted under GLORY rules on Saturday, shutting out fellow Bellator veteran Fernando Gomez over three hard-fought rounds at the hybrid MMA/kickboxing ‘Dynamite’ event. Despite primarily being an MMA fighter, Gonzalez is also a former Muay Thai champion and proved to be suited to GLORY’s all-striking ruleset.
“It was a good fight,” Daley tells Bloody Elbow. “It went to plan. I went out there planning to out-kickbox him rather than brawl.”
Some back-and-forth between Daley and GLORY’s welterweight champion Nieky Holzken in recent weeks has excited interest in a fight between the pair. Daley is already in line for a Bellator title shot but is open to the idea of fighting for Holzken’s title and being a two-sport champion.
“I do want the GLORY title, but this all depends on whether GLORY and Bellator’s relationship continues… If GLORY and Bellator agree on giving me a duel title shot then I will do it,” he says.
“I’ve always thought I have a good chance against Holzken because he’s there to be hit most of the time. Obviously he is the best in the world at the weight, but he likes to fight. This would be an advantage to me.”
“[For now] I will be resting for a few weeks then getting ready for a return to MMA, maybe late this year or early next.”
Bellator MMA promoter Scott Coker has already previously expressed his interest in seeing the fight. “It would be great to see the winner of this fight take on Glory’s welterweight champ Nieky Holzken in the future,” he said in the build-up to Saturday’s ‘Dynamite’ event.
Daley’s mortal enemy Josh Koscheck is now also signed to the Bellator MMA welterweight division and it is no secret that everybody wants to see a rematch of their infamous heated May 2010 meeting at UFC 113.
A combination of Koscheck stifling Daley with his wrestling and maintaining a stream of trash-talk while doing so meant that a frustrated Daley took a swing at him after the bell. That precipitated Daley’s immediate and eternal exit from the UFC, something which the Brit has bridled at ever since.
With both of them under the Bellator banner, a chance for revenge is now at hand.
“I know the Kosheck fight is going to happen, 100%. I’ve accepted the fact already. First I have the title fight versus Koreshkov. This is a good focus for me. Now is the time for me to make some real money,” says Daley.
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